This past Monday, Martin Luther King Jr. Day, a group of my peers from the Interreligious Council volunteered for Emory’s Day On. All of us on the council were asked to liason back to our respective religious groups. I couldn’t believe that even with the snow delay, Hillel brought 20 volunteers! (This was by far the most volunteers from any group.)

The enthusiasm brought to the Oakland Cemetery was tangible. Together we dedicated our time to tikkun olam, hand-in-hand with other religious groups, students, and Atlanta natives. All together, we mulched, shoveled, laughed, played, and smiled. Dr. King would've been proud: on the red hills of Georgia, we all sat together at the table of brotherhood.

As Jewish tradition says, doing for the deceased is a chessed shel emet - the truest type of kindness, for giving to someone who cannot give back. This past Monday, we not only connected back to our roots, but we also lived in the spirit of Dr. King, giving tremendous meaning to our existence Atlanta Jews.

The post originally appeared on the Jewish Food Alliance blog. Mimi Hall is the director of building operations at the Marcus Hillel Center at Emory.

In December, I attended the Hazon Food Conference East at the Isabella Freedman Retreat Center in Falls Village, CT with the help of the Shearith Israel Community Supported Agriculture (CSA).

On Thursday December 9,  I arrived and missed the beginning of Vermicomposting and instead went to hear about “Growing Your CSA.”  This session opened my eyes further to potential membership communities, including the idea of targeting pre-schools in membership drives.  New mothers are really into nutrition...who better to join a group that supports local farms and delivers organic produce weekly to their neighborhood?  These CSAs have appeal not only to indie-types who want to eliminate steps between their consumption and the production of their food, but also new families yearning to feed themselves with delicious and nutritious produce. At this session I also met Jennifer from Houston who runs a CSA through her Jewish Community Center.  She, Naomi Rabkin and I were the extent of the Southern contingent at the conference.  Small and mighty, we started a conversation about the challenges that face our Southern communities - very different than those in the NE and California - one that I hope to continue now that we are back in our respective cities.

The Consulate General of Israel to the Southeast and the Emory Institute for the Study of Modern Israel have announced that His Excellency Dr. Michael D. Oren, Ambassador of Israel to the U.S., will be delivering a private briefing to Emory faculty, students and staff on Monday, November 29, 2010, 4pm at Cox Hall Ballroom, 3rd floor. The presentation is part of the Halle Speaker Series at Emory.

Amb. Oren's presentation will be “The US-Israel Alliance: An Historical and Personal Perspective.”

The event is open to Emory students, faculty, and staff. It is recommended that you arrive fifteen minutes prior for security and seating purposes.

Later that evening, Amb. Oren will be delivering the Eizenstat Family Memorial Lecture at Ahavat Achim Synagogue.

Hillel encourages members of the Emory community to attend both appearances, if possible, as a show of support for our honored guest in Atlanta.

As the Emory campus begins to empty out for the American holiday of Thanksgiving, we might ask: What's Jewish about it this holiday? Thankfully, we have Rabbi Michael Broyde, professor of law at Emory Law and the academic director of the Law and Religion Program at Emory University, to help us reflect on this question.

For more inspiration about how to give your Thanksgiving dinner table a Jewish edge, consider incorporating some Jewish side dish ideas from this JTA article.

Wishing you and your family a very happy and meaningful Thanksgiving holiday!

The student group, "Children of Abraham," has lead several interfaith programs over the course of the past semester. The Children of Abraham representatives from Hillel are David Micley('11C) and Jessie Ginsberg('13C). The group, which aims to bring Jewish and Muslim students together through dialogue, shared values, and social action projects, kicked the year off with an Interfaith Iftar held at the Marcus Hillel Center. The event brought together more than 100 students - Jewish and Muslim - who enjoyed a delicious meal and engaged in discussion that centered on the theme of repentance and drew from classical texts from Talmud and Koran.

During Sukkot, Children of Abraham brought together 47 students for the second annual interfaith Sukkot celebration in the Emory sukkah. Titled "Shake and Shake," the program incorporated two parts: making and enjoying delicious milkshakes and engaging in the customary practice of shaking the lulav. In order to receive a milkshake, students had to answer ten questions on a sheet of paper: 5 questions on Islam and 5 questions on Judaism. The Sukkah was buzzing with Jewish-Muslim interaction, as people from both faiths interacted with one another as they sought answers to learn more about the other religion as well as their own.